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Monthly Archives: September 2016

Kiss the doldrums goodbye (and good riddance)! October is a happening month.

Clouds are parting. A path is opening. Cosmic hands are shoving us onto it. And by the end of the month, we’re taking that path seriously indeed. And possibly a certain person, too.

Progress rolls out in two distinct phases, with the turning point falling neatly on the 15th.The first half moves us out of personal detail-driven clean-up and reboot and into expansiveness and taking others more into account. Perhaps with a touch of kicking and screaming; perhaps that’s mostly at ourselves.

The second half is a wild ride of awakening, adventuring, refocusing and, ultimately, stability. It starts with a galvanizing bang that slams us back into ourselves, and how. Intense conversations, impulses and events follow that strip priorities down to essentials. After that, we’re taking devil-may-care risks and hearts’ desires get real.

Both phases come with a low but constant rumble. Identifying it may be beyond your abilities (though at times you’ll swear you’re hearing the “Jaws” theme). Scorpio is prominent in the sky — the sign hosts Venus in the first half, the Sun starting the 22nd, Mercury on the 24th, the New Moon on the 30th). The veil is thin; the atmosphere teems with mystery, intrigue and a hint of danger.

Think of that rumbling as a reminder to make the most of your time on this side of the divide. Be present and live, here and now, deeply and unwaveringly. The low-level noise is nagging you to push yourself, to confront yourself, to speak up, to not waste time and energy on fluff but instead immerse yourself in profound meaning.

October also brings an easing and, for a bit, speeding up, in the flow of information and getting around. After hunkering down in Virgo for a couple of months, cosmic messenger Mercury cycles through three distinct modes in this one month.

With him still in Virgo until the 7th, the occasional detail will continue to trip us and call for clean-up, the last gasp of Mercury’s recent retrograde. When he takes off into Libra’s airiness on the 7th, the pace speeds up. Thoughts, words and messages take on gracefulness, social niceties and awareness of others. Talking things out, even negotiating, is in style. With the sign’s ruler, Venus, herself in Scorpio through the 18th, what’s being conveyed has an inherent honesty and power that shines through any pretty words that Libra may paint.

Before he dons his third guise, the Aries Full Moon on the 15th blasts us out of complacency and confines (and Lord know what else) and into impulsive, self-directed action. It’s a cocktail of emotional volatility, epiphanies and communication with no room for take-backs.

The incendiary power comes from radical Uranus being conjunct the Moon, with Mercury in an action-demanding square to Pluto, ruler of metamorphosis and the depths of our beings. It’s time for another round of cathartic structural change. This one is both furthering change and revving our engines for the dramatic blast-off coming at year’s end.

The Full Moon also launches a fortnight of fierce, forced action furthering the process. Mars, the god of war and ruler of our drive and aggression, meets with Pluto on the 19th, then clashes with Uranus on the 28th.

This line-up pounds at structures and fault lines that have been worked over in recent years. It shatters restrictions, real or perceived, no matter the cost. Under this assault, stuck places and impediments have to give; new approaches and progress toward long-term goals are inevitable.

There’s another, less pleasant potential, unfortunately, and that is for fury, accidents and violence. David striking at Goliath is a probable theme, with the twist that each side is certain it’s the little guy fighting the monster.

A saving grace comes from Venus moving into Sagittarius on the 18th, while tension is building. In this jovial, fun-loving mode, the love goddess encourages looking for like-minded companions, humor, adventure and bright spots, come what may.

Venus in Sag can also find sport in argument, however, and fan jingoism and “my way or the highway” entrenchment. Add to this the social niceties of Libra giving way to depth, intensity and the surfacing of unpleasant truths (or demons) when Mercury dives into Scorpio on the 24th.

Discussions about ideas and beliefs could turn serious and nasty, fast. As for what this line-up bodes for politics in late October….alas and alack, we ain’t seen nothing yet. With Venus completing a harsh, demanding aspect to Neptune on the 25th, lies and hidden factors are coming out; illusions are losing appeal; denial is vanishing in a finger snap (or thunder clap).

You can either harness this energy to push ahead on long-term construction and break free dramatically from restraints, or you can let events happen to you that wield a similar impact. Either way, you’re running a gauntlet of experiences that shake you to the core, awaken you to what matters most, and send you running straight for it.

The gauntlet empties into a somber, thoroughly adult meeting between Venus and Saturn on the 29th. You know what you want, and who you want. It’s time to get real. It’s time to put form and structure onto those desires. It’s time to commit.

That act feels appropriate, beneficial, maybe a bit magical and even fated. Deep, deep intimacy is in the air with the Scorpio New Moon, which brings a fittingly fright-facing, Halloween vibe to the month’s end.

The veil is thin; this side tempts with reasons to stay. While we dance with ghosts, real and costumed, expansive Jupiter is saluting the North Node of Destiny. He’s looking from his current position in the sign of relationships, Libra, and acknowledging the work and improvement projects we perfected during his last year in Virgo. His salute signals: This way to the future.

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This year’s Libra New Moon launches a phase of new and improved relating.

It’s the first Libra New Moon in 12 year with the optimism and expansiveness of Jupiter in the sign. The beneficent god made his entrance on the 9th, and he’s closing in on the Sun and the Moon as fuse their lights.

He’s sending them subtle but unrelenting suggestions that will color not just this moon phase, but also the next 12 months — genially advocating for more pleasing, harmonious and polite relationships that take both sides of the equation into account.

His clean-up campaign of the last year is over, and now we’re reaping rewards and sharing them. We’re in for an epidemic of social niceties and expansion, improvement and wild optimism in relationships, agreements and artistic creativity.

Jupiter’s encouraging going after what you want, and then some. Bigger is better is his message, impact and goal. “If you can have X,” he whispers, “Why not X to the 10th power? Or 100th?”

Who can resist urgings like that? Not Venus, Libra’s ruler, possessor of the cosmic sweet tooth and ruler of all we hold dear — love, money, art, precious baubles, systems of values. Desire is her raison d’etre. Suggest indulging to her, and she’s on it before the sentence is finished.

Nor can Neptune, Venus’ spiritually evolved counterpart (aka higher octave). He’s a master of transcending — and, let’s be honest, unhinging from — the dreary confines of worldly experience. Fantasizing, romance chick-flick style, elevating a mere mortal to muse, to inspiration, to fast track to the divine or to the divine itself — Neptune’s gauzy gifts have powers of seduction that invite hanging out with them as long as possible….and then some. More of that? You bet.

Yet neither is suggesting — or allowing — sliding back into, much less going overboard in, old ways. Both rulers of love play a gear shift role in this New Moon.

It’s time to not only ask for more in what we can do together, but also to move relationships on to a more beneficial track. This New Moon is a gateway for consciously embracing and implementing dynamics that are appropriate for who we are now.

There’s not much choice, really. Venus’s semi-sextile is driving home how drastically and permanently our concepts of relating have evolved. Neptune’s adjustment aspect (inconjunct) indicates that there’s still tweaking to be done in how we deal with each other. More compassion is likely needed. So, too, is unhooking from fantasy and bringing Neptune’s sweet potential down through the clouds and into something that can exist in earth’s atmosphere.

Besides, sea changes in relating have been coming more and more to the fore as our foundations have groaned, cracked and restructured over the past few years. Relationship rule books have been undergoing radical revising since since the end of 2013, when Venus’ paramour Mars got into the ring with cosmic change agents Uranus and Pluto.

Though experiences have varied from person to person, the changes have had some common themes: greater self-awareness, greater willingness to put cards on the table, and near-zero tolerance for settling and, well, tolerating. (Thank you, Aries/Libra eclipses!).

We’re less inclined to remake or posture ourselves based on what we think or imagine or project the other person wants or needs. (No more living out “Bend Me, Shape Me,” the American Breed song that was a hit in the 1960s, and a Piscean Age anthem if ever there was one.)

The updated paradigm is of self-possessed, self-aware individuals choosing to stand side by side, rather than enmeshing and drowning in each other. Gone is the model of one person bearing the bulk of the responsibility for the relationship; give and take is much more part of the picture, too.

More refining is to come in the next few months. In October, Mars is heading back into the fray with the cosmic change agents, this time to meet directly with Pluto in Capricorn and have a showdown with Uranus in Aries. By the end of the year, Jupiter will be in the ring himself and egging on both sides of the change imperative.

Don’t fool yourself, though. This New Moon, and the phase it ushers in, are not all hearts and flowers. Libra energy is more about seeking balance than having it.

With Jupiter in the mix, watch for scales to go wildly out of balance and polarizing to grow even more extreme. It’s daunting to think that could get worse, given the Us Against Them vibe that has politics in a stranglehold. Yet it will.

More fierceness, more outlandishness and more entrenchment are all in store as the sides of each equation rock and try to commandeer the seesaw. The dynamic will show up individual relationships and public/social conflicts. It will also pit archetypal poles against each other, such as love against fear, masculine against feminine (new horizons in misogyny, oh goodie1), art against greed.

Knowing that, and knowing that fine-tuning is coming later this year, welcome and work with the auspicious potential of this New Moon. Consciously embrace it as a fresh start. Consciously embrace a new model for your relationships and your approach to them.

Libra loves vows. Honor this New Moon by making some vows to yourself. Here are a few that will stand you well.

Be honest with yourself about what you need, what you are (and are not) willing to do and what you are (and are not) willing to receive or expect.

Ask for what you want.

Adopt the Golden Rule as daily life mantra: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Be kind. Treat others with respect.

Be mindful of the power of words. Endeavor to speak gently. Episodes of “The Andy Griffith Show” are a master class in manipulating an awkward situation to everyone’s benefit, without humiliating anyone or hurting feelings (usually Barney’s or Aunt Bee’s).

On the other hand, don’t go overboard with soft-sell or backhandedness. Libra’s flair with words and non-confrontational streak can wander into passive-aggression and outright deceit. You’re more honest with yourself now. Accord others that courtesy.

Treat your relationships as a gift. Tell special people how you feel. Graceful, heartfelt sentiments have magical powers.

Dream big, together, and see how much grace and beauty, joy and magic you can summon into this worldly existence. Then tell the rest of us about it, okay?

This year’s Libra New Moon launches a phase of new and improved relating.

It’s the first Libra New Moon in 12 years with the optimism and expansiveness of Jupiter in the sign. The beneficent god made his entrance on the 9th, and he’s closing in on the Sun and the Moon as they fuse their lights.

He’s sending them subtle but unrelenting suggestions that will color not just this moon phase, but also the next 12 months — genially advocating for more pleasing, harmonious and polite relationships that take both sides of the equation into account.

His clean-up campaign of the last year is over, and now we’re reaping rewards and sharing them. We’re in for an epidemic of social niceties and expansion, improvement and wild optimism in relationships, agreements and artistic creativity.

Jupiter’s encouraging going after what you want, and then some. Bigger is better is his message, impact and goal. “If you can have X,” he whispers, “Why not X to the 10th power? Or 100th?”

Who can resist urgings like that? Not Venus, Libra’s ruler, possessor of the cosmic sweet tooth and ruler of all we hold dear — love, money, art, precious baubles, systems of values. Desire is her raison d’etre. Suggest indulging to her, and she’s on it before the sentence is finished.

Nor can Neptune, Venus’ spiritually evolved counterpart (aka higher octave). He’s a master of transcending — and, let’s be honest, unhinging from — the dreary confines of worldly experience. Fantasizing, romance chick-flick style, elevating a mere mortal to muse, to inspiration, to fast track to the divine or to the divine itself — Neptune’s gauzy gifts have powers of seduction that invite hanging out with them as long as possible….and then some. More of that? You bet.

Yet neither is suggesting — or allowing — sliding back into, much less going overboard in, old ways. Both rulers of love play a gear shift role in this New Moon.

It’s time to not only ask for more in what we can do together, but also to move relationships on to a more beneficial track. This New Moon is a gateway for consciously embracing and implementing dynamics that are appropriate for who we are now.

There’s not much choice, really. Venus’s semi-sextile is driving home how drastically and permanently our concepts of relating have evolved. Neptune’s adjustment aspect (inconjunct) indicates that there’s still tweaking to be done in how we deal with each other. More compassion is likely needed. So, too, is unhooking from fantasy and bringing Neptune’s sweet potential down through the clouds and into something that can exist in earth’s atmosphere.

Besides, sea changes in relating have been coming more and more to the fore as our foundations have groaned, cracked and restructured over the past few years. Relationship rule books have been undergoing radical revising since since the end of 2013, when Venus’ paramour Mars got into the ring with cosmic change agents Uranus and Pluto.

Though experiences have varied from person to person, the changes have had some common themes: greater self-awareness, greater willingness to put cards on the table, and near-zero tolerance for settling and, well, tolerating. (Thank you, Aries/Libra eclipses!).

We’re less inclined to remake or posture ourselves based on what we think or imagine or project the other person wants or needs. (No more living out “Bend Me, Shape Me,” the American Breed song that was a hit in the 1960s, and a Piscean Age anthem if ever there was one.)

The updated paradigm is of self-possessed, self-aware individuals choosing to stand side by side, rather than enmeshing and drowning in each other. Gone is the model of one person bearing the bulk of the responsibility for the relationship; give and take is much more part of the picture, too.

More refining is to come in the next few months. In October, Mars is heading back into the fray with the cosmic change agents, this time to meet directly with Pluto in Capricorn and have a showdown with Uranus in Aries. By the end of the year, Jupiter will be in the ring himself and egging on both sides of the change imperative.

Don’t fool yourself, though. This New Moon, and the phase it ushers in, are not all hearts and flowers. Libra energy is more about seeking balance than having it.

With Jupiter in the mix, watch for scales to go wildly out of balance and polarizing to grow even more extreme. It’s daunting to think that could get worse, given the Us Against Them vibe that has politics in a stranglehold. Yet it will.

More fierceness, more outlandishness and more entrenchment are all in store as the sides of each equation rock and try to commandeer the seesaw. The dynamic will show up individual relationships and public/social conflicts. It will also pit archetypal poles against each other, such as love against fear, masculine against feminine (new horizons in misogyny, oh goodie1), art against greed.

Knowing that, and knowing that fine-tuning is coming later this year, welcome and work with the auspicious potential of this New Moon. Consciously embrace it as a fresh start. Consciously embrace a new model for your relationships and your approach to them.

Libra loves vows. Honor this New Moon by making vows to yourself. Here are a few that will stand you well.

Be honest with yourself about what you need, what you are (and are not) willing to do and what you are (and are not) willing to receive or expect.

Ask for what you want.

Adopt the Golden Rule as daily life mantra: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Be kind. Treat others with respect.

Be mindful of the power of words. Endeavor to speak gently. Episodes of “The Andy Griffith Show” are a master class in manipulating an awkward situation to everyone’s benefit, without humiliating anyone or hurting feelings (usually Barney’s or Aunt Bee’s).

On the other hand, don’t go overboard with soft-sell or backhandedness. Libra’s flair with words and non-confrontational streak can wander into passive-aggression and outright deceit. You’re more honest with yourself now. Accord others that courtesy.

Treat your relationships as a gift. Tell special people how you feel. Graceful, heartfelt sentiments have magical powers.

Dream big, together, and see how much grace and beauty, joy and magic you can summon into this worldly existence. Then tell the rest of us about it, okay?

An umbrella won’t do you any good. A surfboard might not, either; these breakers have indomitable force. Running away is pointless, too.

This Full Moon is a lunar eclipse, escalating everything unfolds under it into larger-than-life proportions. What’s cresting is beyond mortal power. It will find you, no matter where you go.

Better to let the waters wash over (and out of) you. Better still to dive right in. The ride will be exhilarating, purgative, curative and, ultimately, a relief. And you’ll end up on dry land. Eventually.

You’ve been feeling the build-up to this, whether you recognized the signs for what they were. The month has been edgy, unsettling to the point of physical discomfort and motivating, inviting look after look at situations big and small that scream for improvement.

A lot of them, if you’re honest with yourself, have been hovering for some time. The skies have targeted them in a massive clean-up and resetting campaign, and we’ve reached the most intense, inescapable phase.

We’re in the next to last round of a cycle of eclipses on the Virgo/Pisces axis, which started in March 2015 and winds up next spring. They’ve had us ping-ponging between extremes of utterly earthbound, rational existence and utterly unhinging from the earthly.

That cycle kicked off with a Pisces New Moon at the last degree of the zodiac, so emotionally powerful that it sent people with a heavy chart emphasis in water to their beds. The current Full Moon is in the neighborhood, just a few degrees away. Instead of knocking us on our backs, though, this month’s is propelling us to action — and communication.

This lunar eclipse is in complex astrological company, which is transitioning us from a dying way of being in the world to the way that will be the new normal. This Full Moon is an ideal follow-up to the Virgo triple-whammy that launched that process: the solar eclipse on the 1st, with Mercury retrograding in late Virgo and Jupiter ending a year-long trip through the sign.

After the clean-up and reorganizational spree that line-up unleashed, what better final touch than power washing our lives with an emotional blast or two? It’s like spraying suds and debris off a deck after scrubbing it down. Only a little messier. The power wash is showing situations in a way we haven’t quite perceived until now.

This Full Moon is teeming with revelations, exponentially more so than most lunar eclipses (which are generally off the charts in this department). Thank a shift in the machinations of the cosmic fog machine. It’s been on overdrive since late last year, the byproduct of a protracted clash between Saturn, lord of form, and Neptune, lord of all that defies form (and ruler of the Pisces Moon).

Their conflict is behind the vagueness, weirdness and confounding, credulity-defying statements and behaviors that have enveloped us since late last year. The two planets squared off for the last time on the 10th and are slowing backing away from battle.

As the fog evaporates, backstories are emerging; masks are dropping; lies and conceits are being revealed; explanations for all manner of mysteries are tumbling forth.

And as we see more and more what has been going on in front of us, or behind our backs, or in the fog, the lid is flying off emotions. Ignored, buried or denied ones are pouring out with an especially uncontrollable, physically uncomfortable power.

The combo — reality-tilting revelations plus tsunami-force emotions — is motivating us to Do Something.

So is Mars, god of war and ruler of the masculine and our drive and energy. The Sun and the Moon are squeezing him in a dynamic configuration called a t-square. The pressure demands action, so not only ia the lunar eclipse coaxing out emotions and revelations like crazy, but we are acting and reacting. Maybe like crazy, maybe not.

Since Mars is in Sagittarius, the resulting action is spontaneous and high-energy. It may have an element of putting beliefs in motion, perhaps forcefully or with a touch of anger. It may also have a premeditated streak, even with notes of maturity and commitment, reflecting the marching orders that Mars received from order-loving Saturn at the end of August.

Then again, it might be daring to the point of recklessness. Mars is in a direct easy flow to Uranus, agent of radical change, in leap-first, look-later Aries. Fired up by this pair, emotional expression promises to be bold, abrupt and risky, revealing personal truth and letting chips fall where they may.

Whatever we feel, whatever we realize, whatever we express, we are not keeping it to ourselves. The pressure has Mars shooting arrows across the zodiac into Gemini, aka Cosmic Communication Central. We’re broadcasting the effects of this eclipse far and wide, face to face and across social media. (Invoke that Saturnian caution and remind yourself: anything you post online becomes part of your permanent record.)

The playing out is loud, messy, at times overwhelming and ultimately cathartic. Chapters are ending. Doors are slamming and bolting behind us. Many situations will never be the same, and neither will we.

Good thing, too. The waters pouring forth have profound therapeutic properties, with wounded healer Chiron traveling close by the Moon. His presence acts as a cosmic solvent, washing away the illusion of isolation as well as tendencies to soak up, carry and drown in other people’s pains, burdens and sorrows.

The mind can’t stop it. It can’t even overanalyze effectively, at this point. Chiron is opposing Mercury, ruler of the mind and the Virgo Sun. The positioning is putting the whammy on Mercury, overpowering the mind and permeating thoughts, words and messages with compassion, forgiveness and healing on all levels.

Fight it, block it, or dive into it. We will ultimately feel tremendously better, as the eclipse’s effects unroll over the next six months. First signs of relief may well show up as September ends and fades into October.

So take a deep breath. You can’t hold back, much less stop, whatever’s coming. Face it. The skies are providing plenty of courage and fuel; dive straight in. The ride will be wild; it’s true. But the process will be gentler in the long run.

We’re traveling on instruments this week. Honing, refocusing and cutting back while record-level fog blocks eyes and reason. Asking for dreams to come true. Choosing not to isolate; striving to play nice with others. All these concepts connect, somehow.

Bonus: Listen to my talks on this Mercury retrograde & what the fall holds in store.